A microprocessor-based circuit breaker includes a removable chip that defines the current rating or ground fault current for the breaker. The breaker includes mechanical components that trip to disconnect the load terminal from the line input. The mechanical components include a floating breaker arm, trigger and tripper lever that cooperate to control the tripping of the breaker. A spring between the breaker arm and trigger, together with cam surfaces defined in the breaker switch cooperate to form a floating linkage to control the position of the breaker arm during on/off activation and current fault conditions. The circuit breaker also includes multiple indicia to provide a visual indication of the type of fault condition sensed by the breaker.
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1. A circuit breaker having a housing, a line input terminal, and load output terminal and a stationary contact electrically connected to the load output terminal, comprising:
a mechanical trip mechanism including a contact electrically connected to the line input terminal by a conductor passing through the housing and a trigger element, said trip mechanism operable in a normal condition to hold said contact in engagement with the stationary contact and in a fault condition to disengage the contact from the stationary contact when the trigger element is actuated;
a tripping lever pivotably mounted within the housing and including a latch plate operable to engage said trigger element when said trip mechanism is in said normal condition and movable to release said trigger element when said tripping lever is pivoted relative to the housing, said tripping lever including a trip plate configured to pivot said tripping lever upon movement of said trip plate;
an over-current sensor having an actuator operable to move said trip plate when a first fault condition is sensed;
a short circuit sensor, independent of said over-current sensor, said short circuit sensor having a second actuator operable to move said trip plate when a second fault condition is sensed wherein said short circuit sensor comprises an armature disposed about said conductor and operable to produce a magnetic flux in response to current flowing through said conductor, a magnetic lever movably mounted within the housing to move toward said armature in response to said magnetic flux, said lever including a portion for engaging said trip plate when said magnetic lever moves toward said armature, and a biasing member for biasing said magnetic lever away from said armature; and
a fault indicator actuated by movement of said magnetic lever toward said armature, said fault indicator comprising a housing defining a viewing window, a slider slidably mounted within said housing and having differently colored portions alternatively visible through said viewing window, one of said portions signifying a short circuit condition, a means for biasing said slider with said one portion aligned with said window, and a movable locking tab arranged to hold said slider against said means for biasing, wherein said magnetic lever includes an arm operable to move said locking tab away from said slider when said magnetic lever moves toward said armature.
2. The circuit breaker of
3. The circuit breaker of
4. The circuit breaker of
5. The circuit breaker of
an assembly housing removably mounted within the housing of the circuit breaker, said assembly housing supporting said at least one electrical element; and
a plurality of contact pins electrically connected at one end to said at least one electrical element and configured at an opposite site end thereof for removable electrical connection to said electrical processor.
6. The circuit breaker of
a breaker switch pivotably mounted within the breaker housing;
an elongated floating breaker arm electrically connected to the line input terminal and including a contact at one end of said arm configured to make electrical contact with the stationary contact, said opposite end configured for variable pressure engagement with said breaker switch;
a trigger pivotably mounted at a pivot end thereof to the housing and including a trigger tip at an opposite end of said trigger;
a latch mounted within the housing and configured to releasably engage said trigger tip to prevent pivoting of said trigger;
a spring connected at one end thereof to said trigger between said pivot end and said opposite end of said trigger, and said spring connected at its opposite end to said floating breaker arm, said spring operable to draw said trigger and said breaker arm together along a first line of action defined by said spring;
a fulcrum contact between said trigger and said floating breaker arm, said fulcrum contact oriented between said one end of said spring and said contact on said breaker arm, said fulcrum contact and said variable pressure engagement defining a second line of action,
whereby pivoting of said breaker switch changes the relative orientation of said first line of action and said second line of action, in which said contact of said breaker arm engages the stationary contact when said first line of action is between said contact and said second line of action, and said contact of said breaker arm disengages the stationary contact when second line of action is between said contact and said first line of action.
7. The circuit breaker of
8. The circuit breaker of
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The present invention relates to circuit breakers. In specific embodiments, the invention concerns microprocessor-controlled circuit breakers.
Electrical trip systems are designed to respond to a fault in an electrical supply system by disconnecting the supply from the electrical load. One common trip system uses an electromagnet to trip a breaker in response to a short circuit or an electrical overload. In this type of device, the electromagnet generates a magnetic field when current is flowing through the device. When the current exceeds a threshold level, the magnetic field trips a mechanism that causes the breaker contacts to move apart or disconnect, thereby “breaking” the circuit path.
As the electrical system demands have increased, the level of sophistication of circuit breakers as also increased. Processor-based tripping systems have been developed to provide more accurate and flexible circuit breaking capabilities. These microprocessor-based systems permit programming of many features of the breaker, such as current rating, calibration, and fault conditions, as well as storage of pre-fault data.
The present invention contemplates an electrical trip system or circuit breaker that provides multiple indicia of fault conditions. According to one protocol of the inventive circuit breaker, a short-circuit condition is signified by a red indicator in conjunction with movement of the breaker switch to a neutral position. An overload or phase failure condition is signified by a black indicator in conjunction with movement of the breaker switch to a neutral position. A ground fault condition yields a yellow indicator in conjunction with movement of the breaker switch to a neutral position. Under normal conditions, the indicator is black with the breaker switch in its “ON” position.
In one aspect of the invention, the current rating of the circuit breaker is determined by a user-selectable resistor chip that can be plugged into the processor for the circuit breaker. Likewise, the ground fault current can be established by a separate user-selectable resistor chip that is connected to the breaker processor.
In a further feature of the invention, the trip mechanism includes a floating breaker arm disposed between the breaker switch and a trigger. The trigger is held in its armed position by a tripping lever and is spring connected to the floating breaker arm. The breaker arm is electrically connected to the line input and includes a breaker contact that is normally in electrical contact with a load terminal. The breaker arm can be moved to break this electrical contact by deliberate movement of the breaker switch without disturbing the position of the trigger. Alternatively, the breaker arm can be moved to break the electrical contact with the load terminal by release of the trigger.
In one aspect of the breaker function, magnetic lever and armature arrangement is disposed between the line input and the floating breaker arm. The magnetic lever is operable to detect short circuit condition and to actuate the tripping lever to activate the trigger.
In a further feature, the circuit breaker includes a coil actuator that can actuate the tripping lever in a ground fault or an over-current condition. The tripping lever can thus be alternatively actuated by the coil actuator or the magnetic lever.
FIG. 10. is an exploded component view of a fault indicator assembly included in the circuit breaker shown in FIG. 1.
For the purposes of promoting an understanding of the principles of the invention, reference will now be made to the embodiments illustrated in the drawings and described in the following written specification. It is understood that no limitation to the scope of the invention is thereby intended. It is further understood that the present invention includes any alterations and modifications to the illustrated embodiments and includes further applications of the principles of the invention as would normally occur to one skilled in the art to which this invention pertains.
In one embodiment of the invention, a circuit breaker 10 is provided that includes a housing 11 containing the various mechanical and electrical components of the breaker. A line terminal 13 is provided for connection to a line load, while a load terminal 14 permits electrical connection to a consumer load. A processor 16, which is preferably a microprocessor, is connected between the line and load terminals to monitor the condition of the electrical current flowing through the circuit breaker 10.
It is understood that the processor 16 can be of conventional design and that in the typical case the processor is not directly connected to the line input due to the high voltage and current of that input. Instead, the processor 16 relies upon signals from various sensors, such as current or voltage sensors, to accept a reduced voltage/current signal indicative of the electrical condition of the current flowing through the breaker. In the illustrated embodiment, a current transformer 17 can be provided to produce a low magnitude signal indicative of the breaker current. This signal can be provided to the processor 16 as well as to other components of the circuit breaker 10 as discussed herein.
The mechanical breaker components of the circuit breaker 10 include a stationary contact 21 that is electrically connected to the load terminal 13. A floating breaker arm 22 includes a moving contact 23 that is connected to an internal conductor or wire 19, which is preferably a shielded copper wire. This wire is connected to the line terminal 14 to pass electricity to the load terminal when the moving contact 23 engages the stationary contact 21. In the normal operating condition, the two contacts are engaged so that electricity flows freely through the circuit breaker 10. When an abnormal electrical condition arises, the flow of electricity is interrupted by disengaging the moving contact 23 from the stationary contact 21, in a manner that is well known in the art. In one embodiment, the conductor wire 19 can include an unshielded portion 24 that is connected to the floating breaker arm 22 in a manner described herein.
More specifically, the breaker arm 22 can be constructed as shown in FIG. 2. The breaker arm 22 is preferably formed from a sheet of conductive material, such as tin-plated copper. The arm 22 is bent into a generally U-shape to define a top wall 52 and opposite side walls 55. The movable contact 23 is mounted to the top wall 52. One of the side walls 55 can include a tab 60 that can be crimped around the end of conductor wire 19 to provide an electrical interface to the breaker arm 22.
For purposes that will be explained in more detail below, the breaker arm 22 defines a spring slot 53 in the top plate 52 and an aperture 57 in one of the side walls 55. The U-shape formed by the opposite side walls 55 define a trigger channel 61 for receiving a trigger 30 therein. Each of the side walls 55 includes a fulcrum tip 59 and defines a cam edge 55a, as shown in FIG. 2. Moreover, one of the side walls forms a trigger contact 56, again for purposes more fully explained herein.
One of the side walls 55 defines an aperture 57 that is used to support an arc separator plate 32. As shown in
The circuit breaker 10 also includes a breaker switch 25 that can be used to deliberately move the breaker from its “on” or active, to its “off” or disconnected state. In addition, the position of the switch serves as an indicator of the type of electrical fault sensed by the breaker. The switch 25 is pivotably mounted within the housing 11 by a pivot mount 27. As shown in more detail in
The switch is sectioned in
Returning to
The trigger 30 includes a trigger pin 133 that extends perpendicularly through the trigger plate at the corner between the first and second legs 30a, 30b. The third leg 30c terminates in a trigger tip 135 that engages a tripping lever 34, as described herein. A spring aperture 131 is defined in the second leg 30b, generally closer to the third leg 30c than the first leg 30a. The spring aperture 131 provides a connection point for one end of a spring 31, while the opposite end of the spring is connected to the floating breaker arm 22 at the spring slot 53, as depicted in FIG. 1. The spring 31 is a compression spring meaning that its natural tendency is to draw the second leg 30b of the trigger 30 and the breaker arm 22 together. In the normal operating condition shown in
The spring is held in tension and the mechanical breaker components maintained in their operative or “on” state shown in
The circuit breaker 10 includes a magnetic lever and armature combination that senses a short circuit condition and operates to activate an indicator. In the illustrated embodiment, the breaker includes a magnetic lever 42 that is pivotably mounted to a magnetic armature 43. Details of these two components are shown in
As shown in
Returning to
The channel 77 and pins 78, 79 contain the conductor wire 19 extending through the armature 43. Current flowing through the wire 19 creates a magnetic flux through the armature 43 which tends to attract the magnetic lever 42. During a normal operating condition, this flux is not great enough to overcome the biasing force of the torsion spring 80, so the lever 42 is normally separated from the armature 43 as shown in FIG. 1.
However, when the lever 42 is attracted to the armature 43, the upward movement of the lever bears against a fault indicator assembly 45. Details of this assembly appear in FIG. 10. In particular, the assembly includes a housing 87 that supports a viewing window 88. One end of the housing defines a slider opening 90, while the opposite end of the housing is an open end 91 for insertion of the moving components of the indicator assembly. A pair of flanges 89 extend beneath the housing 87 to pivotably support an indicator carrier 103. The bottom wall of the housing 87 defines an opening 92 to receive the locking tab 106 of the carrier 103.
The carrier 103 includes a bushing 105 through which a pin 101 extends to pivotably mount the carrier to the flanges 89. The carrier includes a biasing arm 104 that includes an upwardly extending post 107 for receiving a biasing spring 109. This biasing spring pushes the arm 104 away from the housing, which causes the carrier 103 to pivot about the pin 101 to push the locking tab 106 upward through the opening 92 in the housing 88.
When the locking tab 106 is in this normally biased position, the tab bears against an indicator slider 93. The slider 93 is slidably disposed within the housing 88 and is biased toward one end of the housing by a pair of extension springs 100. A cover 98 closes the open end 91 of the housing and provides a reaction surface for the springs 100. Spring posts 99 can be provided to help support the extension spring 100. The slider 93 includes a tongue 94 that extends through the opening 90, as shown in
The upper face of the slider 93 includes two differently colored sections, the first section 95 having a first indicator color and the second section 96 having a second indicator color. Either section is visible beneath the viewing window 88 depending upon the position of the slider. In a preferred embodiment, the first indicator color is black and nominally indicates a normal operating condition. The second color in section 96 can be red to indicate a fault condition.
The exploded diagram in
The current rating or ground fault current specification for the circuit breaker 10 can be determined by way of a replaceable chip assembly 50, such as illustrated in FIG. 12. The assembly 50 can include a housing 122 with a removable cover 123 to provide access to a resistor or resistors 125 mounted therein. Contact pins 126 are electrically connected to the resistor(s) 125 and provide means for making electrical contact with a mounting pad of the processor 16. The replaceable chip assembly thus is integrated into the shaping and amplification circuitry of the processor to determine the tripping current conditions. The chips 50 can provide current rating from as low as 0.1 amps to as high as 125 amps and beyond by proper selection of the resistor(s) within the chip. Thus, a single circuit breaker 10 can be modified for virtually any electrical system application by the simple expedient of changing out the chip assembly 50.
With the details of the breaker components described, attention can now turn to the function of these components. As indicated above,
The trigger contact 56 of the arm 22 bears against the fulcrum bar 137 of the trigger 30 to form a mechanical linkage between the floating breaker arm 22, spring 31 and cam recess 65. The line of action of the spring 31 in this orientation keeps the breaker arm in the orientation shown in
Referring now to
When the switch movement is reversed—i.e., when the switch is turned back to its “on” position shown in FIG. 1—the cam recess 65 pushes the fulcrum tip 59 of the breaker arm 22 to the right. The linkage formed by the fulcrum bar 137 and spring 31 will cause the breaker arm 22 to snap to its “on” position of
When a short circuit condition arises, the circuit breaker 10 moves to the configuration shown in
With the tip 135 free to move, the spring 31 draws the trigger 30 and floating breaker arm 22 together. As the trigger 30 rotates about its pivot 130, the fulcrum bar 137 no longer restrains the movement of the breaker arm 22. Instead, the cam recess 65 and pivot recess 66 of the breaker switch 25 controls the upward movement and rotation of the arm 22. The breaker arm 22 is thus held in the position shown in
This rotation of the switch is also facilitated by pressure from the trigger pin 133 against the cam edge 64 of the pivot body 26. As the spring 31 tries to contract, it causes the trigger 30 to rotate until the pin 133 bears against the cam edge 64. This same contact is also used to reset the circuit breaker. In particular, when the fault condition has been resolved, the breaker can be reset by first rotating the switch to the right. This rotation of the switch causes the cam edge 64 to push against the trigger pin 133, thereby causing the trigger 30 to pivot about its pivot point 130. As the trigger continues to pivot, the trigger tip 135 bears against the latch plate 35 of the tripping lever, causing the lever to rotate about its own axis. Eventually, the trigger 30 has pivoted enough so that the tip 135 becomes lodged in the aperture 36, thereby resetting the trigger 30. The switch can then be rotated back to the left, to its “on” position, to force the floating breaker arm 22 into electrical contact with the stationary contact 21.
Referring back to
When the breaker is reset, the switch is first rotated to the right, as described above for resetting the trigger. This same movement also resets the fault indicator assembly 45. As the trigger is pivoted to the right, it pushes against the tongue 94, causing the slider 93 to retract within the housing 87. When the slider 93 has moved sufficiently far, the locking tab 106 can pivot upward under inducement from the biasing spring 109 until it locks the slider in the position shown in FIG. 1. It should be noted that while the fault condition exists, the magnetic lever 42 will remain in its upward position. When the lever is in this position, the lever arm 73 will continue to bear against bias arm 104 of the indicator carrier 103, which will prevent rotation of the carrier back to its original position. However, once the fault condition has been rectified, the torsion spring 80 will push the magnetic lever 42 back to its original position, thereby freeing the indicator carrier 103.
An over-current fault is illustrated in FIG. 15. As explained above, the magnet tripper 47 is supplied with current from either the current transformer 17, or from the processor 16. Most preferably, the current is obtained from the processor through a relay. When the processor determines that an over-current condition exists (by evaluating the signal from the current transformer), it opens the relay which terminates current to the coil 114 of the magnet tripper 47. When the coil is inactive, the magnets 115 are released, which allows the core 117 to travel upward under influence from the spring 119. This upward movement is carried through by the tripper pin 48 until the pin contacts and rotates the trip plate 37 of the tripper lever 34. At this point, the movement of the lever 34 and the remaining mechanical components of the breaker continue as described above with respect to
The present invention also contemplates a ground fault breaker and indicator system. Referring to
The ground fault indicator 159 can be constructed similar to the magnetic tripper 47. The top portion of the core 117 can be modified to carry certain indicia to signify a ground fault condition. The coil 114 of the magnet tripper and the comparable coil of the ground fault indicator can both be connected to the ZCT 154. When a ground fault condition arises, current through the ZCT ceases, thereby deactivating the two coils. When the magnetic tripper 47 coil is deactivated, the tripper pin 48 operates as explained above with respect to FIG. 15. In addition, when the coil of the ground fault indicator 159 is deactivated, the core 117 pops up, exposing the top portion of the core. In a preferred embodiment, the top portion of the core can be yellow in color or carry a yellow cap. When current is restored, the respective coils are re-energized and both the tripper pin 48 and yellow indicator are retracted to signify that the fault condition has been cleared. The circuit breaker 150 can be provided with a test switch 160 that allows personnel to temporarily interrupt current to the ground fault indicator 159 to verify its operability without tripping the mechanical components of the breaker and thereby disconnecting the load.
While the invention has been illustrated and described in detail in the drawings and foregoing description, the same should be considered as illustrative and not restrictive in character. It is understood that only the preferred embodiments have been presented and that all changes, modifications and further applications that come within the spirit of the invention are desired to be protected.
Brandon, Joseph T., Lin, Tony C.
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